Sacha Opinel
Personal information | |||
---|---|---|---|
Date of birth | 9 April 1977 | ||
Place of birth | Bourg-Saint-Maurice, France | ||
Height | 1.77 m (5 ft 9+1⁄2 in) | ||
Position(s) | Defender | ||
Senior career* | |||
Years | Team | Apps | (Gls) |
1991–1997 | Cannes | ? | (?) |
1997–1998 | Lille 2 | 11 | (0) |
1998–1999 | Ajaccio | 7 | (0) |
1999–2000 | Raith Rovers | 22 | (0) |
2000–2001 | Plymouth Argyle | 0 | (0) |
2001 | Leyton Orient | 11 | (1) |
2001–2002 | Billericay Town | 24 | (2) |
2003–2005 | Farnborough Town | 56 | (2) |
2005–2006 | Crawley Town | 31 | (2) |
2006–2009 | Ebbsfleet United | 104 | (0) |
2009–2010 | Farnborough | 11 | (1) |
2010 | → Eastbourne Borough (loan) | 2 | (0) |
2010 | → Burgess Hill Town (loan) | ||
2010–2011 | Harlow Town | ||
* Senior club appearances and goals counted for the domestic league only and correct as of 22:45, 23 March 2011 (UTC) |
Sacha Opinel (born 9 April 1977) is a former French professional footballer who played as a defender. He has made over 200 appearances in the French Ligue, the Scottish League, the English Football League and the English Football Conference, and won a FA Trophy winner's medal in 2008.
Career[]
Opinel, who is a cousin of Eric Cantona,[citation needed] began his career with French clubs Cannes, Lille and Ajaccio before joining Scottish club Raith Rovers in December 1999, where he made over 20 league and cup appearances.[1] He was released by Rovers in December 2000 by mutual consent after a series of on and off-the-field problems.[2] After training with Third Division club, Plymouth Argyle,[3] Opinel was given a short-term contract so that manager Paul Sturrock could take a closer look him over the 2000 Christmas and New Year period.[4] He made only one appearance for Plymouth in a Football League Trophy tie against Bristol Rovers[5] and was not offered a contract. After a trial at Bournemouth,[6] he joined Leyton Orient in February 2001, where he made eleven appearances in the remainder of the 2000–01 season,[1] scoring one goal against Cardiff City,[7] and helped Orient towards the Third Division play-offs in May 2001.[8]
Opinel then dropped into non-league football, joining Billericay Town at the beginning of the 2001–02 season.[9] He joined Farnborough Town in July 2003,[10] signing a two-year contract in May 2004,[11] but requested a transfer for personal and professional reasons and joined Crawley Town in January 2005 in a deal that saw Farnborough receive a substantial transfer fee as well as Robert Traynor move from Crawley to Farnborough.[12] Opinel had started over 50 games for Farnborough.[13] Opinel agreed a contract until May 2006 with Crawley and in July 2006, he joined Gravesend & Northfleet (now Ebbsfleet United).[14] He signed a new contract in May 2007 and collected a winners medal when Ebbsfleet won the FA Trophy at Wembley Stadium in May 2008.[15] On 4 June 2009, Opinel re-joined Farnborough.[16]
Honours[]
- Ebbsfleet United
- FA Trophy: 2008
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Sasha Opinel". Soccerbase. Racing Post. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Not got Opinel". The Mirror. 19 December 2000. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Opinel for Plymouth". The Mirror. 21 December 2000. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Pilgrim's Progress". The Mirror. 29 December 2000. Archived from the original on 3 November 2012. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Bristol Rovers 3–0 Plymouth". BBC Sport. 9 January 2001. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Purches returns for Cherries". BBC Sport. 8 February 2001. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Cardiff 1-1 Leyton Orient". BBC. 6 March 2001. Retrieved 16 May 2017.
- ^ "Blackpool pip Orient to promotion". BBC Sport. 26 May 2001. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Foreign influence at Billericay". Non League Daily. 29 November 2001. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Taylor add three more to Boro squad". Non League Daily. 28 July 2003. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Opinel boost for Seare". Non League Daily. 14 May 2004. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Crawley and Farnborough in swop deal". Non league Daily. 15 January 2005. Retrieved 14 June 2008.
- ^ "Crawley complete Opinel signing". BBC Sport. 14 January 2005. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
- ^ "Frenchman Opinel joins Gravesend". BBC Sport. 4 July 2006. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
- ^ "Ebbsfleet 1–0 Torquay". BBC Sport. 10 May 2008. Retrieved 15 June 2008.
- ^ "Sacha – It's good to be back". Farnborough Official website. 4 June 2009. Archived from the original on 28 May 2009. Retrieved 4 June 2009.
External links[]
- Sacha Opinel at Soccerbase
- Profile on Ebbsfleet United website
- 1977 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Savoie
- French footballers
- Association football defenders
- AS Cannes players
- Lille OSC players
- AC Ajaccio players
- Raith Rovers F.C. players
- Plymouth Argyle F.C. players
- Leyton Orient F.C. players
- Farnborough F.C. players
- Crawley Town F.C. players
- Ebbsfleet United F.C. players
- Burgess Hill Town F.C. players
- Harlow Town F.C. players
- Eastbourne Borough F.C. players
- Billericay Town F.C. players
- Championnat National 2 players
- Ligue 2 players
- Scottish Football League players
- English Football League players
- National League (English football) players
- French expatriate footballers
- French expatriate sportspeople in England
- French expatriate sportspeople in Scotland
- Expatriate footballers in England
- Expatriate footballers in Scotland